Terms of Service
Acceptance of Terms
By accessing or using Verd ("the Platform"), you agree to be bound by these Terms of Service. If you do not agree, do not use the Platform. These terms apply to all users, including visitors, registered members, and contributors.
Description of Service
Verd is a community-powered fact-checking platform focused on claims made by music artists. Users may submit claims, vote on verdicts, provide sourced evidence, and comment on claims. Verd does not produce editorial content — all verdicts reflect community votes based on user-submitted evidence.
User Accounts
- You must be at least 13 years old to create an account.
- You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your credentials.
- You may not share, sell, or transfer your account to another person.
- You are solely responsible for all activity that occurs under your account.
- We reserve the right to suspend or terminate accounts that violate these terms.
User-Generated Content
By submitting content to Verd (claims, comments, evidence, votes), you grant Verd a non-exclusive, worldwide, royalty-free licence to display, distribute, and store that content on the Platform. You retain ownership of your content.
You represent that:
- You have the right to submit the content.
- The content does not infringe any third-party intellectual property rights.
- The content is not defamatory, abusive, obscene, or unlawful.
- Any quoted lyrics or excerpts are used for commentary, criticism, or educational purposes under fair use.
Prohibited Conduct
You agree not to:
- Submit false, misleading, or fabricated evidence.
- Harass, threaten, or impersonate other users or real individuals.
- Use the Platform to spread defamatory content about real persons.
- Attempt to manipulate community votes through coordinated inauthentic behaviour.
- Scrape, reverse-engineer, or abuse the Platform's API without authorisation.
- Use automated scripts to submit claims, votes, or comments.
- Upload malware, phishing content, or any malicious code.
Verdicts and Accuracy
Verdicts on Verd represent the collective opinion of community members based on user-submitted evidence. They are not editorial statements of fact. Verd makes no warranty as to the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any verdict, claim, or evidence on the Platform. Do not rely on Verd verdicts for legal, financial, or other consequential decisions.
Termination
We may suspend or terminate your account at any time for violation of these terms, abuse of the Platform, or any other reason at our discretion. Upon termination, your right to use the Platform ceases immediately. Content you submitted may be retained for platform integrity purposes.
Changes to Terms
We may update these terms at any time. We will notify users of material changes by updating the "Last updated" date and posting a notice on the Platform. Continued use after changes constitutes acceptance of the revised terms.
Privacy Policy
Information We Collect
Account information: When you register, we collect your email address, username, and (if using Google OAuth) your Google profile name and profile photo.
Content you submit: Claims, votes, comments, and evidence you post are stored and displayed on the Platform.
Usage data: We collect standard server logs including IP address, browser type, pages visited, and referring URLs. This data is used for security monitoring and to count claim views.
Cookies: We use session cookies to keep you logged in. See our Cookie Policy below for details.
How We Use Your Information
- To operate and maintain your account.
- To display your username, profile photo, and submitted content publicly.
- To send transactional emails (account confirmation, password reset) — no marketing emails.
- To detect and prevent abuse, spam, and policy violations.
- To improve Platform performance and features.
Information We Share
We do not sell your personal information. We do not share your data with advertisers. We may share data with:
- Service providers: Our infrastructure runs on cloud providers (hosting, database) who process data strictly on our behalf.
- Legal obligations: We may disclose information if required by law, court order, or to protect the rights and safety of our users.
Public Content
Usernames, profile photos, submitted claims, votes, and comments are publicly visible. Do not include personal information in claims or comments that you wouldn't want publicly associated with your username.
Data Retention
We retain your account data for as long as your account is active. If you request account deletion, we will delete your personal information within 30 days, though publicly submitted content (claims, comments) may be retained in anonymised form for platform integrity.
Your Rights
You have the right to access, correct, and delete your personal data. You can update your profile information at any time from your account page. To request full account deletion or a data export, email us at degiferocks123@gmail.com.
Security
We use industry-standard security practices including encrypted connections (HTTPS), hashed passwords (bcrypt), and access controls. No system is 100% secure — use a strong, unique password and do not share your credentials.
Children's Privacy
Verd is not directed at children under 13. We do not knowingly collect personal information from users under 13. If we become aware that a user is under 13, we will delete their account and associated data.
Copyright & DMCA
Fair Use
Verd users may quote short excerpts of song lyrics for the purposes of commentary, criticism, and fact-checking. This is consistent with the principles of fair use under 17 U.S.C. § 107. Verd does not host full song recordings, music videos, or any pirated media.
DMCA Takedown Procedure
If you believe content on Verd infringes your copyright, send a written notice to degiferocks123@gmail.com with the following:
- Identification of the copyrighted work you believe has been infringed.
- Identification of the material on Verd you believe is infringing, with enough detail to locate it (e.g. the claim URL).
- Your contact information (name, email, address).
- A statement that you have a good faith belief that the use is not authorised.
- A statement, under penalty of perjury, that the information in your notice is accurate and you are the copyright owner or authorised to act on their behalf.
- Your physical or electronic signature.
We will respond to valid DMCA notices within 72 hours and remove infringing content promptly.
Counter-Notification
If content you submitted was removed in response to a DMCA notice and you believe the removal was in error, you may submit a counter-notification to degiferocks123@gmail.com.
Repeat Infringers
Verd will terminate the accounts of users who are repeat copyright infringers in appropriate circumstances.
Disclaimer
No Editorial Endorsement
Verd is a community-driven platform. Verdicts, claims, and evidence reflect the opinions of community members — not the views of Verd, its operators, or its moderators. Verd does not endorse any verdict, claim, or statement on the Platform.
No Defamation Intended
Verd is designed for entertainment and educational discussion of publicly available information about public figures in the music industry. No content on Verd is intended to defame, harass, or cause harm to any individual. All claims must be based on cited sources.
If you believe content about you or your client is false and potentially defamatory, contact us immediately at degiferocks123@gmail.com. We take such requests seriously and will review and respond within 48 hours.
No Affiliation
Verd is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any artist, record label, management company, or any third party referenced on the Platform. Artist names and likenesses are referenced for purposes of commentary and criticism only.
Third-Party Content
Verd integrates with the Genius API to allow users to cite lyrics. Genius is a separate, independent company. Verd has no control over Genius content and is not responsible for its accuracy. The presence of a Genius citation does not constitute an endorsement of Genius or its platform.
Limitation of Liability
To the maximum extent permitted by law, Verd and its operators shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising from your use of the Platform, including reliance on any verdict or claim posted by users.
Governing Law
These terms are governed by and construed in accordance with applicable law. Any disputes arising from the use of Verd shall be resolved through good-faith negotiation first. If negotiation fails, disputes shall be submitted to the appropriate courts of competent jurisdiction.
Questions about any of the above?
degiferocks123@gmail.com